Help Please! Third Week Post-Op and Really Struggling

LouisaMay:

I cannot thank you enough for your words and suggestions.  I absolutely will try the citrus Listerine mouthwash.  That is a great idea.

I think I would be still struggling with this even if I lost 5-7 pounds the second week, but it's almost like the 2 pounds was adding insult to injury. 

You are absolutely correct that 2 pounds is still weight loss and that I will lose weight, and that I shouldn't necessary expect it to be on my time table.  I knew that plateaus and slowdowns happen; I guess I was just surprised it would happen so early and when I was strictly limited to liquids only.

THANK YOU FOR TELLING ME I CAN DO THIS.  You have no idea how much that means to me.  I have to keep reminding me of that.  And yes, I need to remember to breath.

Thanks again,

-Jen

My doctor said a minimum of 60 grams protein. I am 5 weeks out and I can hit that with foods as long as I don't wake up late or miss a meal. Also as long as I choose the right foods. Shrimp is low in calories and high in protein. Make the right choices and you may not have to drink them. Many people here say higher protein, usually 100+, if I did that I would have to supplement. The same people also say to follow your plan and I do. When I was getting 90+ grams of protein my doctor said to back off a bit. Soooo, I aim for 60 and up and I can do that pretty easily without shakes most days. I do enjoy my protein hot chocolate though, yum.

Hi Bella:

My doctor requires 100 oz of liquids and minimum of 90 grams of protein a day.  If I work out heavily, I'm supposed to up the protein.  This is part of the reason I am having difficulty.  On Friday I didn't meet either goals and was sluggish all day on Saturday, which meant I slept too much which meant I didn't reach my goals again.

It's a vicious cycle.  I liked my protein hot chocolate the first week, then for some reason I couldn't blend it properly and it was gritty and clumpy (yuck!).

I wish I liked shrimp, but I don't eat seafood.  I can tell already from many of the recipes I've been given that my lack of eating seafood will be yet another detriment to me.

Thanks for your reply!

Fish was my go to when I started soft foods. I would say when/if you can, chicken salad would be good. I also love turkey pepperoni and I eat lunch meat a lot. I like the Applegate Farms brand. It is low in calories and carbs, decent in protein. There is no way I can hit 100g protein without a supplement.

It sounds like you are still on the liquids though. I did not like the Premier Protein so much, but I love the Syntrax Matrix Mint Cookie. I struggled for some time in the first week. I bought samples of every brand I could find and hated ALL of them until I tried the Matrix brands. My favorite is the Mint Cookie and the runner up is their milk chocolate. That one mostly because it is good, but also because I bought about 10 bottles of Torani syrups that I use to make them taste like all kinds of different things. I still have some samples left that I haven't even tried. I'm kind of scared to since I hated all the rest. Oooohhh, and for a savory fix I did absolutely love the Unjury Chicken soup. It was such a nice break from the sweet shakes.

I hope you can find something that works for you.

5 weeks out and already on shrimp? Does that mean you can eat anything you want now?

My surgeon fast-tracked me onto solids. He believes the sooner we get on solids, the more satiated we are and the less we struggle. I can't answer for people who have issues with solids because I never did, and I ate shrimp the first time at 2 weeks.  Chewed very, very well! But no probs!

My doctor originally said I could go to full solids at 6 weeks, but after a impromptu appointment he said I was doing so well I could go ahead with full solids. He told me just to be careful with tough foods and to chew everything very well. I have had zero problems eating anything. The only thing that has made me sick were the vitamins they tried to make me take.

Yes, I will give the Premier a try also.  Hopefully, I can purchase a small quantity to try it.  Thanks for all the suggestions and kind words.  Getting this protein and water in is harder than expected.  I'm 6 weeks out and having a struggle.

thanks again.  This forum is so helpful.